creativity challenge – Promoting Passion

31/31 July Challenge

brookeshaden — Mon, 31 Jul 2017 18:57:29 +0000

It felt weird writing 31/31, and timely, too. As I reflected on this past month, there were so many sentiments I wanted to talk about. My personal growth, which was tremendous. The amount I learned about my craft. The amount of new skills I acquired. The amount of spider webs I walked into, and so on.

What stood out most, though, was the word commitment. I kept coming back to it. Sure, the commitment is obvious: I committed to 31 days of content. A photo, video and blog every day. That’s 93 pieces of content in one month. It is a commitment in every sense of the word. But the word commitment feels hollow if I don’t pair it with community.

I am part of this community, and you are, too. Every day I woke up with a desire to share my life, my unfolding story, with anyone who wanted to listen. Because, at the end of the day, I am not creating solely for myself. I am creating to unleash my imagination, to understand myself more deeply, but also, and equally important to me, is that I am creating for those who feel they cannot. I am creating for those who need to feel connected, who need to feel those two most beautiful words rising in their throat:

Me too.

I don’t take this community lightly. This is my life. This is my craft. This is my soul. I am sharing it because that makes me complete. I am sharing it because if I can do some good in this world, I will try with everything I have. This month took everything I had; every ounce of energy, every bit of patience, and a lot of miles on the road. But it also brought me so much beauty. I was incredibly present. I was connected. And now that the end is come, I desire more. I want to help more people. I want to be a light for someone who is in darkness. And one day, when I am the one in the dark, I know someone from this community will be there to light my way.

Thank you for your support this month. This image is a representation of how I have felt – held up by hands stronger than my own. I owe you.

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Today is the last day to sign up for the 15 Day Content Creation Challenge. We begin tomorrow! This is a creativity challenge for any type of artist. You will receive a 52-page e-book, content creation chart, daily challenges and emails, and a supportive Facebook group. And, there is no set cost. You pay only what you can. And 40% goes to charity, so win-win! Registration closes at 5:00pm PST, and emails begin at 5:00am PST on August 1st!

29/31 July Challenge

brookeshaden — Sat, 29 Jul 2017 21:59:49 +0000

Tell me something – why do you share what you do with others? What draws you into the process of not only creating, but also letting others see what you do?

Is it the desire for connection?
The desire to grow a business?
The desire to make money from your passion?
The desire for accolades?
Feedback?
Community?
Support?

All of those are valid reasons, and I have felt each of them in their own time. I have been influenced by wishing I was good at something, especially because I grew up never being the best at anything. I really wanted to be accepted because I always felt fundamentally different from my friends – now I cherish that, but I didn’t always.

This morning I shared my shoot for this image live on Instagram. The funny thing about doing that is that it didn’t feel very different from any of my normal shoots, even though I mostly shoot alone. I was still physically alone in the field I was shooting in, except that 1,000 of my friends were with me. The reason why it didn’t feel very different is because now that I have a community – this community – I feel surrounded by love a lot. I feel accepted, cherished even, and like I am part of something.

Every time I go on a shoot, I imagine everyone there with me. I answered an interview this week where someone asked me why I share my work. I thought about it for a while, and then gave the answer that felt more authentic. That is this: when everything seems to fail, when I feel like no one likes my work, I remember that isn’t the point. The point is not for people to love what you do, it is for someone to care about it. For that one person to be touched by what we do in such a way that their thinking or feeling is permanently changed.

You never know when you’ve been that person for someone else. Trust me. Don’t discount yourself, don’t tell yourself that your work could never be that important. I know, because I was that person. I thought no one would care. I thought no one would be impacted. Yet there I was, standing in a field with paint sprayed on my face in a wedding dress, and there you were – caring. Being impacted. Some of you not. Some of you, yes.

Why are you here? It is a desire to care? That is why I show up. I want to care – about something, about someone. I want to care for this life as deeply as possible. Thank you for showing up for me.

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Don’t forget to sign up for the 15 Day Content Creation Challenge. Pay what you can, and 40% goes to charity. Registration closes on July 31st.

27/31 July Challenge

brookeshaden — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 17:05:00 +0000

Oh my darlings! What a week it has been. I’ve been working incredibly long days and trying so hard to create the best content for you. Today is the day! The 15-Day Content Creation Challenge is open for registration! And it is PAY WHAT YOU CAN! Literally, pay only what you want for the challenge. Not a cent more. Take full advantage of that, I want you to.

Take a look at the details for the 15 Day Content Creation Challenge!

This month has opened my eyes to the vibrancy and fragility of life. Our time is not guaranteed, and I want to make the most of every moment. For me, that means expressing myself through art, exploring who I am and traveling deeper into my own depths. By doing so, I can better connect to others, and, in my wildest dreams, help them with their craft, too.

I wanted to create a flower image today because of that inspiration, so I decided to create this, which is an update from a similar image from last year. It felt so natural to create this today, and it came together so easily, like it was begging to be made. That was a very welcome change of pace from my very hectic life all week. I have one more important meeting that I have to do lots of preparing for tomorrow, and then I can focus again just on creating this weekend.

I hope that you enjoy the Content Creation challenge, I really do.

Lots of hugs today!

26/31 July Challenge

brookeshaden — Wed, 26 Jul 2017 19:47:24 +0000

Last night I could tell that I’ve been working too hard (12-14 hour days, this whole past week) and my body needed a little extra rest. I set my alarm for 4am, but when it went off I let myself sleep until 5. The only issue with that is that the light isn’t the best then as the sun begins to come up, so instead of rushing out to a location I shot against a white sheet in my garage. And boy, was this a bad one to do in my neighborhood. I looked like I had just escaped a hospital, and there was no shortage of dog walkers slowly walking past this morning.

I have always loved photographing bandages because of how timeless they are while being sad and a signifier of pain at the same time. Old and sad are my favorites. I have been using these bandages since I started taking pictures. I had a vision of a group of girls standing in a circle, abandoned, scared to look out from the bandages that have kept them in the dark.

The truth is that we all too often feel we are wearing a mask, or that someone is trying to force us into one. We marginalize people and try to get them to fit into our version of what they should be. Some of us do that to others, knowingly or not. I know I have done it to others unintentionally, but the result is the same: making someone feel inadequate for being who they are. I have felt that in my own small ways in the past – that I am too weird, or too antisocial, or I should do this or that, and I should definitely not do other things. It is human to feel out of place, but it shouldn’t be part of the human experience to be made to feel that way.

To me, bravery looks like the person who would peer out from behind the mask they wear to show the world who they are, despite what anyone might say about it. It is the one in the group who looks first, not knowing what they will see, and then encourages others to open their eyes. At some point in our lives, we could all use the encouragement to open our eyes when darkness is much more comforting.

I hope that no matter what you are going through you find the courage to look out at your world with your very own unique eyes and cast your gaze upon it’s wonders. You are sure to change the landscape just by being open to seeing it.

P.S. Very soon I’m releasing a brand new PAY WHAT YOU CAN challenge that I’m so excited for. You’ve got a 50 page e-book coming, daily emails, and all the guidance you could need to take on a CONTENT CREATION challenge. WAHOO!

5/31 July Challenge

brookeshaden — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 16:54:43 +0000

I went hiking this morning with my love, as we do many times a week, and I wanted to shoot my image for today on that hike. I decided not to film anything so that I could have more time appreciating my morning and less time worrying about if each video is in focus. So, I created a speed edit video for today instead of an “atmospheric” video, but I deem that A-okay. This project isn’t supposed to be any one particular thing, and part of why I wanted to do it is to be okay with going with the flow.

“Haunted Wings”, self-portrait shot with Sony A7II + 50mm lens.

Plus, today is Muse Day!

If you don’t know about Muse Day, it is something we made up in my house in which every Wednesday we focus solely on taking in inspiration for upcoming projects we have. Which means I am meant to finish The Hobbit and study more of “The Story Grid”, which has turned me into a storytelling education addict. But less about that…

…And more about the image. My usual 4:30am rolled around and I happily sauntered out of bed. I packed up the car and off we went to our favorite trail to enjoy a mountain hike. We gathered sticks along the way and I got set up for my self-portrait, even wearing my dress backwards like a skirt with my pants and hiking boots still on underneath (those are the best kinds of dresses, eh?). For some reason, no matter how often I shoot early in the morning, I never anticipate the sun. She came creeping up in a matter of minutes, so I shot in a hurry and tried my best to get the branches photographed before the light completely covered them.

I keep having one intent for these images and something sneaks its way in and turns my ideas sour. I don’t rightly mind, though, since I am open to new directions this month. I was going to create a more monotoned image, but the colors were calling to me so loudly and I kept them (though tweaked them to my liking). I’m really enjoying listening closely to my craft and letting it speak instead of always stifling it into submission.

Now, I’m off to second breakfast with my Hobbitses.

P.S. Anyone else notice that double-jointed elbow? Yeesh.